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Dante and Virgil in Hell
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Dante and Virgil in Hell

painting by Eugène Delacroix
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Eugène Delacroix's painting, "Dante and Virgil in Hell," depicts a scene from Dante Alighieri's epic poem, The Divine Comedy. The Inferno, the first part of the poem, describes Dante's fictional journey through Hell, guided by the Roman poet Virgil.123

Hell is structured into nine circles, each punishing specific sins with corresponding torments. For instance, the wrathful are eternally fighting in the muddy River Styx. At the very bottom, Lucifer eternally devours traitors Judas, Brutus, and Cassius. Delacroix's painting specifically illustrates the eighth circle of Hell, which punishes fraud, showing two men fighting while Dante and Virgil observe in horror.234

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
6 Britannica Sources
  1. Inferno: Top Questions
  2. The Divine Comedy
  3. Ten Depictions of Hell
  4. List of Day Jobs of Famous Writers - • Dante : Prior
  5. 29 Paintings You Can Visit Only at the Louvre - The Death of Sardanapalus (1827)
  6. Dante - The Divine Comedy

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